Medicaid program that provided economic boost to rural NC communities on the chopping block

Medicaid program that provided economic boost to rural NC communities on the chopping block

By Jaymie Baxley North Carolina’s first-in-the-nation Healthy Opportunities Pilot, which sought to address the nonmedical health needs of rural residents on Medicaid, faces a bleak future after state lawmakers failed to extend funding for the program in their stripped-down “mini budget” passed last month. Launched in 2022, HOP provided deliveries of food, rides to doctor’s appointments and other services to help alleviate some of the social, eco…